Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “relativity” come from?

relativity (English) comes from English relative, from Middle French relatif, from Latin relātīvus, from Latin relātus, from Latin referō, from Latin rĕ-, from Latin prōdūcō, from Latin prō- — passed , crossed.

relativity (English): The state of being relative to something else;...

Definitions

  1. The state of being relative to something else;...

Ancestry of “relativity”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishrelativeConnected to or depending on something else;...
2Middle Frenchrelatif—
3Latinrelātīvus—
4Latinrelātus—
5Latinreferō—
6Latinrĕ-—
7Latinprōdūcō—
8Latinprō-—
9Proto-Italic*pro-—
10Proto-Indo-Europeanpro-toward, forward
11Proto-Indo-Europeanpor-to give birth; forward, through; going, passage
12Proto-Indo-Europeanper-before, in front; first; to go through
13Proto-Indo-Europeanpr̥tóspassed , crossed
Every word from Proto-Indo-European pr̥tós →